"Really cool" apartment web sites

I am helping an multifamily owner and friend in the industry identify "really cool" apartment web sites -- and I am curious is what web sites do other Multifamily Insiders find "great" -- whether it is functionality, appearance, ease of use, informational, etc.?

I have a handful myself, but I am interested in hearing the opinions of others in the groups.

However one catch -- I don't want your company's web site. To keep it fair, you can only use examples of other multifamily web sites that you like (hopefully you like your own web site and find it "really cool").

I look forward to everyone's thoughts.

check out the Mural here in Seattle
www.muralapartments.com

Great interactivity, great community integration, and nice overall flow

Nice site and is "Unit" in again ("unit features")? Also, why do they have a "Current Residents Portal" - wouldn't "Resident Portal" or even "Resident Concierge" be sufficient? Sorry, and I just don't know why many people go 99.999% and then stop . . .

Check out www.fenwaytriangletrilogy.com

Hey Doug,

In all fairness to the Mural Apartments web site and your comment

"Sorry, and I just don't know why many people go 99.999% and then stop . ."

Check out the E-Pay option on www.FenwayTriangleTrilogy.com .

BTW, I am not here to "poke holes" in company's web sites -- I just want to get some idea of what web site MFI folks really like and think are ""really cool".

Thanks to all!

Oh, I know - on Fenway, when you go to "Apartments w/style" and then "floorplans", it will tell you "There are currently no units of this type available. Be sure to check back."! Two other sites I was going to send you are live links to pages saying they were shut down for non payment! I guess I should be grateful - if more people were conscious at work, they wouldn't need the Doctor!

Unit seems to be gaining in acceptability again out here, again. I do agree with you about the use of "current" but I'm wondering if they're trying to play off the urgency and "in crowd" mentality that might be a connotation of the word.

I dunno - I've always disliked "unit" and after a certain episode of "No Reservations", I can't help laughing out loud when someone uses it! bit.ly/cgDKxH

I debated whether or not to respond to this since I may be biased. But...

I think it's kinda odd how so many multifamily people are fixated on the correct word usage. Before I started working in this industry I didn't care if a website said "unit" versus "apartment" or "community" or "complex" << again that's just my opinion.

I think the Mural site is eye catching and I think the reason it says Current Resident Portal is so that Prospects won't click on it and wonder why they can't "get in"

And a fun example of a site that makes me want to move to Chicago: envchicago.com

The fixation of multifamily folks on "controlled word usage" is deeply rooted in the fact that uncontrolled usages of an innocuous term like "Master Bedroom" can be used against you in a law suit.

@Elysa I agree that we can often get caught up in over thinking things we do and word we use in marketing. It is important to ask non industry insider what they think about it.
@Leigh There is no doubt that whatever legal exposure could be created by using the incorrect word has to be managed. I just wish/ hope that common should prevail...

As far as a site I do like this one. Easy to use and good information. I probably would use a bit less color in the menu on the left but the ease of use is good and it is visually engaging urbaneapts.com/fairmont.htm

I like both of the sites examples but they violate my one rule of web design which is don't over flash (or don't use it at all). In my opinion flash should never be used for navigation. I am a huge fan of Archstone Apartments website. It uses flash sure but for photos only. It flows together nicely and navigation is simple.

@Bill
Funny you brought up the use of flash. html5 seem to be a preferred option based on the challenges to mobile viewers. I though about it and did not want to take the conversation in a different direction... I do agree that flash appears to present challenges and should probably be avoided.

The issue with HTML5 is that not every browser supports it yet. IE8 has limited support. (and it's still the biggest browser out there but losing market share fast: Browser Stats ) It's not until you get to Firefox 3.5 where it is and of course Chrome supports it fully. I am hoping HTML 5 means the end of Flash (did I type that) but it probably won't. Bottom line for me is avoid flash for your navigation. It's nice for a photo slideshow but not for moving about the site. Too many challenges and inconsistencies.

While I would love to nominate my own site, I will instead suggest two companies who's websites I admire. UDR ( www.udr.com ) continues to pioneer with new technology and user experience. They have mobile application downloads for iPhone and Android. Archstone ( www.archstoneapartments.com/ ) is a great way to see how a large company can make the user have an easy navigational experience when browsing the site.

Agree totally. If there is a new technology out there for multifamily than UDR has it on their site. Cannot imagine what their web budget is. Awesome stuff.

Check out ........ - Really cool unique features on this site!


Also - ......... - Nice Clean look with great features as well!

(Moderator note: Can you please send me a private message with your contact info? Just want to verify since it is under a guest account! Thanks!)

Hey Leigh - make sure your friend's website works on the iPad (and other mobile devices). I just went on www.fenwaytriangletrilogy.com/ and got a black screen (I'm in the airport on my iPad. Hope all is well.

The site is built on a flash platform which will not work on an ipad and iphone. It also may not work on many other mobile devices... With mobile gaining so much ground this is something that should be addressed in my opinion.

"The site is built on a flash platform which will not work on an ipad and iphone". Just one of many reasons I say to stay away from flash for navigation or even photos. #1 reason is mobile but flash is also known to be flaky on MAC's as well. Stay away from a proprietary technology. I'll get off my soap box now. Ha.

Flash is bad for SEO, but it does make your website look pretty and stand out from the competition. In regards to mobile phone browsing/use increasing, Flash will not work on the iPhone/iPad, but it will work on Android and Blackberry, once Adobe releases Flash for mobile in a few months. The easiest and most cost efficient way of making sure your site is viewable on any platform (mobile, browser, device) is to have it without Flash. However, I wouldn't be surprised if companies started to have apartment applications available for iPhone and Android, so you can still have your Flash website, but still attract mobile users with an application.


It will be interesting to see if Adobe makes Flash more SEO friendly and stable across multiple platforms/devices. Also the whole Adobe vs Apple fight will be interesting to watch.